Each year, the fund rewards employees nominated by parents and peers. The late Ray Lewis, a former Columbia Board of Education member, and his wife, Jeanne Lewis, a former teacher, created the fund in 1978.

State Rep. Stephen Webber, D-Columbia, will speak at the ceremony, which is scheduled for 6 p.m. April 15 at the Peachtree Conference Center, 120 E. Nifong Blvd.